A recent study published in the Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience journal has shed light on the potential effects of commonly prescribed antidepressants on the normal gut microbiota. The study, performed by Dr. Leonova L.V., Rukavishnikov G.V. et al., aimed to evaluate the growth kinetics of normal human gut microorganisms with antidepressants most commonly used in […]

Clinical depression is a common psychiatric condition with often devastating consequences. A new study in Biological Psychiatry, published by Elsevier, advances our fundamental understanding of the neural circuitry of depression in the human brain.  

Since the 1960s, researchers have postulated that major depression stems from disruptions in the serotonin neurotransmitter system, but the evidence for that idea, though plentiful, was indirect. In fact, a recent comprehensive analysis of existing studies concluded that there was not strong evidence to support the “serotonin hypothesis.” In its wake, some in the field […]

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden might have found an explanation for why people with self-injury behaviour generally feel less pain than others. The key seems to be a more effective pain-modulation system, a discovery that can benefit people seeking help for their self-harm. The findings are published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.  

People with at least two of the diseases type 2 diabetes, heart disease or stroke have double the risk of developing dementia. Prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular disease could therefore be a strategy for reducing dementia risk, a study from Karolinska Institutet published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia suggests.  

While long-lasting antipsychotics (LLA) were specifically developed to address the problem of adherence in patients with chronic psychiatric disorders, their role in pediatric populations is not clear. Xavier Benarus et al. conducted a systematic review to assess the efficacy, tolerability and acceptability of LLA.    Case reports/series presented positive therapeutic outcomes in noncompliant youths with […]

Statins have been hailed as a wonder drug; the cholesterol-lowering drugs have been prescribed to tens of millions of people since their approval in the late 1980s to prevent heart attack and stroke. But the drugs may yet have additional benefits, some research has hinted, including on mental health. Now, a new study examines the […]

Six predictors could help determine the amount of lithium needed to treat patients with bipolar disorder, according to a large study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. The study, published in the journal The Lancet Psychiatry, also pinpoints genetic markers that seem to influence how quickly the body eliminates lithium from its system. […]